At 67, Neil Diamond is a slightly muted version of the showman he has always been
Four decades into a career as the sequined king of soft rock, celebrated in his 1970s peak as much for his rakish growl and helmet of wavy hair as for hits like Sweet Caroline and Song Sung Blue, Neil Diamond is enjoying something of a career renaissance.

Always a strong concert draw, he has been making more money on the road than ever before, grossing $168 million over his last three tours, according to Billboard. And in May his 46th album on the charts, “Home Before Dark” (Columbia)—a set of stripped-down and reflective songs—became his first to reach No. 1. Diamond, 67, is now on a mostly sold-out world tour that will take him well into 2009. “I never expected that I would be doing this for as long as I’ve been doing it,” he said, “But I don’t think I’m ever going to stop. It’s the only challenge I have left in my life.”
Onstage Diamond is a slightly muted version of the showman he has always been, belting his songs in a still-powerful baritone and punctuating the climaxes by pointing straight up to the rafters. Only his hair is much different: thinned, cropped short and streaked with gray. At the XL Center in Hartford, more than 12,000 fans rose to their feet and shouted when he began the opening number, Holly Holy.

Diamond is known as a particularly hard-working performer and songwriter. When writing songs, he said, he keeps copious notes on yellow legal pads and lugs the paperwork around in dozens of shopping bags. On tour, he has his meals sent by FedEx every day from a dietary consultant in California. Backstage at the XL Center, he warmed up his band with light calisthenics and a group whoop, and announced, “This is the 16th time we’ve played this building.” “I run a two-hour marathon every time onstage. So I have my electrolytes kept at a certain level, and I do my carb-loading after the shows for the next night,” he said.

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